This invention relates to football training apparatus and more particularly to apparatus for training football players to maintain their legs spread a predetermined distance during blocking or tackling exercises.
A football player who executes a face block or a shoulder block and who maintains a wide stance is generally more stable and thus more difficult to knock down than he would be if he maintained his legs close together. When a lineman assumes his initial stance at the line of scrimmage prior to the start of the play, he generally assumes a stance in which his legs are spread a sufficient distance to effect a proper block. After the start of the play and initial contact with an opposing player, some linemen tend to bring their legs closer together and thus become unstable and more easily knocked down. It is important that a football player maintain a relatively wide stance during the entire blocking movement in order to obtain maximum blocking effectiveness.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide football training apparatus which will teach a football player to maintain a relatively wide stance throughout an entire blocking or tackling exercise.
It is another object of the present invention to provide football training apparatus which will teach a football player a more stable stance when he is blocking or tackling an opposing player.
The present invention comprises a stance training member which is disposable between the legs of a football player and is adapted to be connected by a resilient cord to a football blocking sled mounting a chargeable pad, the cord being of such length that the player executing the block will straddle the stance training member when he is in position to engage the blocking pad.
It is important that the cord be resilient so that in the event a player inadvertently steps on the stance training member as the block is being executed, the blocking exercise is not interrupted as it would be if the cord was inelastic. With apparatus constructed according to the present invention, if a player inadvertently steps on the stance training member, forward movement of the stance training member is inadvertently interrupted although the sled and chargeable pad can continue moving forwardly. As soon as the player steps off the stance training member, the stance training member will be moved forwardly toward the sled to maintain its position between the football players legs so that the blocking exercise can continue until fully executed. Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a stance training member which is connected to a blocking sled via a yieldable member.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art as the description thereof proceeds.